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Process Water Recirculation during Hydrothermal Carbonization of Waste Biomass: Current Knowledge and Challenges

Author

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  • Antonio Picone

    (Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Enna KORE, 94100 Enna, Italy)

  • Maurizio Volpe

    (Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Enna KORE, 94100 Enna, Italy)

  • Antonio Messineo

    (Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Enna KORE, 94100 Enna, Italy)

Abstract

Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) is considered as an efficient and constantly expanding eco-friendly methodology for thermochemical processing of high moisture waste biomass into solid biofuels and valuable carbonaceous materials. However, during HTC, a considerable amount of organics, initially present in the feedstock, are found in the process water (PW). PW recirculation is attracting an increasing interest in the hydrothermal process field as it offers the potential to increase the carbon recovery yield while increasing hydrochar energy density. PW recirculation can be considered as a viable method for the valorization and reuse of the HTC aqueous phase, both by reducing the amount of additional water used for the process and maximizing energy recovery from the HTC liquid residual fraction. In this work, the effects of PW recirculation, for different starting waste biomasses, on the properties of hydrochars and liquid phase products are reviewed. The mechanism of production and evolution of hydrochar during recirculation steps are discussed, highlighting the possible pathways which could enhance energy and carbon recovery. Challenges of PW recirculation are presented and research opportunities proposed, showing how PW recirculation could increase the economic viability of the process while contributing in mitigating environmental impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonio Picone & Maurizio Volpe & Antonio Messineo, 2021. "Process Water Recirculation during Hydrothermal Carbonization of Waste Biomass: Current Knowledge and Challenges," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-14, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:10:p:2962-:d:558578
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Halina Pawlak-Kruczek & Agnieszka Urbanowska & Lukasz Niedzwiecki & Michał Czerep & Marcin Baranowski & Christian Aragon-Briceño & Małgorzata Kabsch-Korbutowicz & Amit Arora & Przemysław Seruga & Mate, 2023. "Hydrothermal Carbonisation as Treatment for Effective Moisture Removal from Digestate—Mechanical Dewatering, Flashing-Off, and Condensates’ Processing," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-9, July.
    2. Krystian Krochmalny & Halina Pawlak-Kruczek & Norbert Skoczylas & Mateusz Kudasik & Aleksandra Gajda & Renata Gnatowska & Monika Serafin-Tkaczuk & Tomasz Czapka & Amit K. Jaiswal & Vishwajeet & Amit A, 2022. "Use of Hydrothermal Carbonization and Cold Atmospheric Plasma for Surface Modification of Brewer’s Spent Grain and Activated Carbon," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-11, June.
    3. Agnieszka Urbanowska & Małgorzata Kabsch-Korbutowicz & Christian Aragon-Briceño & Mateusz Wnukowski & Artur Pożarlik & Lukasz Niedzwiecki & Marcin Baranowski & Michał Czerep & Przemysław Seruga & Hali, 2021. "Cascade Membrane System for Separation of Water and Organics from Liquid By-Products of HTC of the Agricultural Digestate—Evaluation of Performance," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-18, August.
    4. Urbanowska, Agnieszka & Niedzwiecki, Lukasz & Wnukowski, Mateusz & Aragon-Briceño, Christian & Kabsch-Korbutowicz, Małgorzata & Baranowski, Marcin & Czerep, Michał & Seruga, Przemysław & Pawlak-Krucze, 2023. "Recovery of chemical energy from retentates from cascade membrane filtration of hydrothermal carbonisation effluent," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 284(C).
    5. Michela Lucian & Fabio Merzari & Michele Gubert & Antonio Messineo & Maurizio Volpe, 2021. "Industrial-Scale Hydrothermal Carbonization of Agro-Industrial Digested Sludge: Filterability Enhancement and Phosphorus Recovery," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-15, August.
    6. Sun-Ju Lee & Min-Ah Oh & Seung-Jin Oh & Na-Hyeon Cho & Young-Yeul Kang & Jai-Young Lee, 2022. "Effects of Bioliquid Recirculation on Hydrothermal Carbonization of Lignocellulosic Biomass," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-10, July.

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